Book Review: Top Secret Twenty-One by Janet Evanovich

Hello, Fellow Book Worms and Book Dragons!

  Have you ever read a series of books that were always there for you? They make you laugh, cry, or even shout out loud after reading a chapter. For me this series is Janet Evanovich's Stephanie Plum novels. Each book is filled with adventure, mystery, danger, and hilarious moments. There are crazy and lovable characters that always surprise. And with the aid of Lorelei King's brilliant narrations on the series' audio books, you have the perfect recipe for a great reading slump killer. 

   
  Top Secret Twenty-One is written by Janet Evanovich and published by Bantam Books, a division of Random House. In this twenty-fifth book in the series we find our heroine, Stephanie Plum, working through the everyday motions as a bond enforcement agent for her cousin Vinny's Bail Bonds office. Stephanie is inept with a gun, prone to having her car blown up, and lives with love and lust on her shoulders in the form of boyfriend, Joe Morelli, and the handsome and mysterious Ranger. Life is never dull for Stephanie, but sometimes she hopes it would be.

  In Top Secret Twenty-One a famous used car salesman, Jimmy Poletti, is caught selling a lot more than cars at his dealerships. He is bonded through Vinny's office, and conveniently misses his court date. That is when dead bodies begin to show up, and various explosions are detonated in the hopes of killing Poletti's bookkeeper, Randy Briggs. Returning to Stephanie's life, Randy comes under Stephanie's care, which also results in a rocket being shot into her apartment meant to wipe out Briggs. Fans will remember this three-foot-tall pain in the butt from several novels of past. He is always in on a scheme and sleeping with other men's wives. It is little wonder he is always on someone's hit list. 

  But Poletti and Randy Briggs are the least of Stephanie's worries in this page-turning wild ride. Ranger's office is hit with a chemical attack that has halted his business. And the perpetrator may be connected to a dangerous assassin with the penchant of leaving human hearts as warnings to his enemies. And several other of Vinny's bonded criminals have yet to appear for their court dates, including Stanley Kulicky (breaking and entering at a  diner to steal rice pudding while he was high), Gloria Grimley (armed robbery at a local bakery), and Forest Kottel (shoplifting at a local market most likely to feed his pack of feral Chihuahuas that live with him in his cardboard box). 

  If that was not enough, Stephanie's Grandma Mazur is in a geriatric war with Joe Morelli's Grandma Bella that may or may not have started with Bella being covered in cake. Grandma Mazur is on a quest to fill her bucket list, which includes seeing Ranger naked, which comes to pass in a most hysterical paragraph Evanovich has ever written. 

  Top Secret Twenty-One is a wonderful read that keeps you on the edge of your seat one minute. Then has you laughing so hard you fall off that edge the next. Stephanie's cranky and paranoid parents are back. As is ex-hooker-turned-bond-enforcer Lula with a maddening fear of demon-possessed feral Chihuahuas. And having Randy Briggs back had me smiling ear to ear.

  Lorelei King (Mother in Alien: Covenant) is back to narrate Top Secret Twenty-One. Her grasp of various voices, accents, and sheer comedy contained in this book is a perfect marriage of the audible and the written word. I always welcome an Evanovich book that is narrated by King. Not only is she a great narrator, but she is very friendly and down to Earth. We have exchanged words on Twitter on a few occasions and she is always marvelous to speak to.

  I gave Top Secret Twenty-One four out of five stars. For a fantastic and fun adventure look no further than Janet Evanovich.

 Have fun reading this week. Let me know in the comments below what you are reading.

 

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  Because there is always time to read,
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Top Secret Twenty-One book cover (c) Copyright 2017 by Bantam Books